John 13:5-14

Context13:5 He poured water into the washbasin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to dry them with the towel he had wrapped around himself.1

13:6 Then he came to Simon Peter. Peter2 said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash3 my feet?”
13:7 Jesus replied,4 “You do not understand5 what I am doing now, but you will understand6 after these things.”
13:8 Peter said to him, “You will never wash my feet!”7 Jesus replied,8 “If I do not wash you, you have no share with me.”913:9 Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, wash10 not only my feet, but also my hands and my head!”
13:10 Jesus replied,11 “The one who has bathed needs only to wash his feet,12 but is completely13 clean.14 And you disciples15 are clean, but not every one of you.”
13:11 (For Jesus16 knew the one who was going to betray him. For this reason he said, “Not every one of you is17 clean.”)18

13:12 So when Jesus19 had washed their feet and put his outer clothing back on, he took his place at the table20 again and said to them, “Do you understand21 what I have done for you?
13:13 You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and do so correctly,22 for that is what I am.2313:14 If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you too ought to wash one another’s feet.

14snThe one who has bathed needs only to wash his feet. A common understanding is that the “bath” Jesus referred to is the initial cleansing from sin, which necessitates only “lesser, partial” cleansings from sins after conversion. This makes a fine illustration from a homiletic standpoint, but is it the meaning of the passage? This seems highly doubtful. Jesus stated that the disciples were completely clean except for Judas (vv. 10b, 11). What they needed was to have their feet washed by Jesus. In the broader context of the Fourth Gospel, the significance of the foot-washing seems to point not just to an example of humble service (as most understand it), but something more – Jesus’ self-sacrificial death on the cross. If this is correct, then the foot-washing which they needed to undergo represented their acceptance of this act of self-sacrifice on the part of their master. This makes Peter’s initial abhorrence of the act of humiliation by his master all the more significant in context; it also explains Jesus’ seemingly harsh reply to Peter (above, v. 8; compare Matt 16:21-23 where Jesus says to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan”).

15tn The word “disciples” is supplied in English to clarify the plural Greek pronoun and verb. Peter is not the only one Jesus is addressing here.

16tnGrk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.